I draw eyes and they always look empty and dead

Why this happens

Dead-looking eyes are missing either the correct highlight placement or depth in the iris.

FIX IT NOW

1. The highlight must be pure white, hard-edged (not blended), and placed at the top edge of the iris slightly off-center — around 10 o'clock or 2 o'clock position, not exactly 12. This assumes standard lighting from above. If your light source is elsewhere, adjust the highlight position to match — the highlight always faces the light
2. A blended or soft highlight looks like a reflection on glass. A hard white dot looks like a living eye. Don't blend it
3. Add a second smaller highlight on the opposite side at about 20% opacity. This is reflected light from below. Two light sources = visible depth
4. The iris should be darkest at the very top edge (where the eyelid casts shadow) and gradually lighter toward the center. Uniform iris color reads flat
5. A thin line of warm reflected color from the skin at the very bottom of the iris makes it look wet